Why are all the Art Majors crying?
A Year for Cheer
GV Cribs
Ashlee Seaton
Editor-in-Chief
Blake Walker
Managing Editor
Linnea Hietala
Assignment Editor
Jesus Martinez-Aviles
Assignment Editor
Carly McCoy
Assignment Editor
Mayeli Jimenez
Chief Photographer
Donminic Goosby
Photo Editor
Erin Nossaman
Photo Editor
Ashlyn Miller
Design Editor
Megan Mitchell
Social Media Editor
Gloria Hackett
Video Editor
Happy spring Vikings! Welcome to the last issue of the 2022-2023 school year! I am super excited for all of you to read this issue since we have three feature stories that share lots of great information on various topics. On page 8, we have a group feature by three of our editors reflecting on the extreme price increase of groceries and how students are trying to budget. On page 14, Carly McCoy answers the campus question: Why are all the art majors crying? Then, on page 26, Blake Walker introduces Shea Ruffridge and his championship family who have made a large impact on their community. This issue has many more captivating stories that bring light to different topics both on and off campus and features a lot of new faces. After all the reading, check out some summer-themed games at the end to win a prize! Thank you to all of the students, faculty and staff who participated in this magazine. I cannot wait to see everyone next year!
4: Lackey’s Legacy
Written by: Austin Elbert
6: International Women’s Day: Our Past and Future
Written by: Charlie Deyoe-Snyder
8: Students, Groceries, Soaring Prices, OH MY!
Written by: Erin Nossaman, Ashlee Seaton and Blake Walker
12: How to Take Advantage of Your Summer
Written by: Gloria Hackett
13: Dating Apps
Written by: Linnea Hietala
14: Why Are All The Art Majors Crying?
Written by: Carly McCoy
18: A Year For Cheer
Written by: Sami Hallaway
20: Wellness U for U
Written by: Ashlee Seaton
22: Breaking From The Pack
Written by: Noah Huff
24: Get To Know Pt. 2: GVU Club Presidents
Written by: Jordan Lipinski
26: The Winning Ruffridge Tradition
Written by: Blake Walker
30: Welcome To The Metaverse
Written by: Isaac Kam
32: Gleaming and Gold: A Look Into The State Of Iowa’s Capitol Building
Written by: Lauren Myli
36: Eyes Set on Grad School
Written by: Megan Mitchell
38: GV Cribs
Written by: Erin Nossaman
40: Staycations
Written by: Megan Mitchell
41: Fun and Games: Submit for a prize!
Find more stories from the Viewfinder staff at viewfindergv.com or on any social platform
KC McGinnis Advisor Comments?
viewfindergv@grandview.edu
College students cry, but art majors seem to be more open about it. On page 14, learn about Creative Process, a class complete with its own tissue box. This is where students dive in and find out who they are and why their work as artists is so important.
Cover photo by: Dom Goosby
that they love their church, they love Grand View, and this was kind of the final project that needed to be done. It really does kind of serve the church, but it also is meant to serve our Lily projects as well as the university and the community,” Lackey said.
Through all of the improvements made to campus ministry, it might be hard to imagine a church without Lackey, but that is exactly what is about to happen. At the end of this year, he will be leaving GVU to take up a new call near his hometown in Newport Beach, California. Besides growing the campus ministry community and the physical changes Lackey also said that there’s some repair work to be done spiritually too. Faas said that Lackey and the ministry at Luther Memorial have never given up hope.
“I believe that every institution has a life cycle like a person’s age and then you need new birth…I think the work that was done on Grand View Campus that was related to faith really began with World War II and the baby boom and did a cycle.” “I’m doing a lot of funerals for church members, right? So, they lived in the building, they experienced the full life of the baby boom. I think my time has been to allow that cycle to end and to put in place new birth for the next 50 years,” he said.
Transitions take a lot of listening too, and it’s through that attentiveness that Lackey has been able to be a sounding board and a confidant for many students at GVU. Lackey has loads of advice to give to students just starting out and those who might be graduating soon.
waiting to interview.
“My hope is that they find someone who has a pastor’s heart… someone who will genuinely just pastor the students and pastor the congregation. Love the people – do that first and foremost, and then the second thing is, forget about the programs that we have. If you take care of the business of loving the congregation and loving the people then be open … just make sure you love the people,” Lackey said.
While Lackey might have a renovated church to preach in, an endowed chair to teach with, and all the accolades that come with all of the changes he’s made to campus, he said the one thing that he loves about his job, and the one thing that he’s going to miss the most, is the people and students at GVU.
By AustinThe word revival has a few meanings. It could mean, “a renewed interest or attention in something,” a “new presentation or publication of something old,” or a “period of renewed religious interest.” For the past 127 years, one place at Grand View University has experienced revival in all its forms: Grand View Lutheran Church.
For 11 of those 127 years, the Rev. Dr. Russel Lackey, or ‘Pastor Russ’ as he is known to the campus community, has served the church as the Senior Campus Pastor, and it is under his guidance that the church entered that period of revival. Before Lackey’s arrival on campus, the church had a diminished presence on campus and in the community. Campus Ministry employee Kate Faas explained how Campus Ministry has managed to stay thriving.
“When Pastor Russ came, campus ministry was very, very tiny, and it was kept alive by some very faithful people,” Faas said.
Despite the revivals, there were some challenges.
“It was struggling to survive; I was told at one point there was only four people at chapel,” Faas said.
Lackey said there were times when the chapel had about twenty to twenty-nine individuals on a Sunday.
“The building was in bad shape. They [some individuals] might have lasted for a long time, but they weren’t connected like we are. So, it felt like in many ways instead of turning the lights off, we began to turn ‘em back on,” Lackey said.
Lackey’s plan to turn the lights back on had to start somewhere, and so he started with the congregation to see if they were open to trying new things. As Faas put it, they were totally on board.
“The congregation has been very open to Pastor Russ. The congregation to Pastor Russ is like, ‘let’s try it and if it works great, and if it doesn’t, we’ll learn from it,’” Faas said.
Lackey’s efforts paid off, too. In his
11-year tenure at GVU, he helped raise $4 million to establish the “Rassmussen Skow Campus Pastor Chair,” the “LBIC Chair,” and the “Forde Professorship.”
Lackey also raised 2 million dollars to help establish the Nexus Institute and the Moses Project. Lackey’s efforts don’t stop there. He has also helped grow the church through grants from The Lilly Project and through the campus community.
One of Pastor Lackey’s most ambitious projects was the 5-million-dollar renovation to the 105-year-old Luther Memorial Church. For this project Lackey said that his way for getting funding from this project came from within the congregation itself.
“Grand View has been under a lot of buildings with the physical plant. You had the Rasmussen Building, the new dorms put up, and then the Student Center. What was interesting was a lot of the names on those buildings were connected to the church. So, I realized
“COVID definitely had people feeling lonely, isolated, and disconnected. When COVID hit, they started having parking lot church and Russ would have a microphone and they’d sing from their cars. We also had a drive through communion, we’d have church on the lawn by Humphrey, sometimes we’d be in the Rodhold Room. Not all churches are super flexible with these kinds of things, but we made it work,” Faas said.
Many of the people in the church that wanted that connection were elderly men and women of the congregation, and that is where Lackey said one of his biggest roles as pastor comes into play.
“You know, Hellen Keller said ‘life is an adventure, or its nothing at all.’ I would simply say that there’s a lot of reasons to be nervous or scared about the present future, there are a lot of anxieties that we can have and a lot of doubts in our minds and hearts about ourselves, and others. But finding the way or the people to journey with you to go through life to take risks and to keep going. That’s all I really encourage them to do is try to live the life you want to live and be gracious to those around you and be gracious to yourself,” Lackey said.
Lackey also had some advice for the new campus pastor: should they find a copy read the Viewfinder magazine while
“I’m sad most about leaving people. I genuinely love the team I work with. I also love this new generation of students, people who have gone through a lot and are looking for connection. I’m genuinely sad I won’t get a chance to live into that. Then finally, I’m going to be sad to miss what President Keck is doing. She is great, she has good vision. I like the ideas that she has and what she’s generating with the President’s Council. I am more optimistic about Grand View’s future than I’ve ever been, and I’m sad that I won’t be able to experience that up close,” Lackey said.
students are interested in getting involved with Campus Ministry, they may reach out to GVU Campus Ministry Associate Levi Faas at lfaas@grandview.edu, or Fellowship of Christian Athletes representative Nan Veach at nveach@fca.org. Traditional Service at Luther Memorial is every Sunday starting at 10:00 a.m. with coffee and cookies to follow in fellowship all at 11:00 a.m. Additionally, students can attend chapel every Tuesday from 11:00 a.m. to 11:20 a.m.
are single. Expensive and inaccessible childcare limits the options of working mothers and can mean they have to turn down opportunities for promotion or further education in order to take care of their children.
“If you have an infant that you have to put in childcare and enroll them in a childcare center, the cost will be slightly higher than attendance at one of the state universities,” Bremner said.
Early Childhood Iowa is aiming to change this by providing parents with better childcare search tools and offering assistance programs for low-income families. Through these programs they hope to not only assist current working mothers, but also give the next generation the necessary resources to succeed.
Another panelist on the future-oriented panel, Juanita Donahue, offered advice to young women thinking about where their own paths might lead them.
ness’, because that’s how you create change,” Donahue said.
The idea of that “onlyness” is something that many women face, but it did not seem present in the crowded room at the event. The thoughtful conversation and dialogue between attendees was energetic, hopeful, and jovial.
GVU student Rae Beebe said her thoughts looking forward were centered around creating the same kind of trust and community that flowed through the room.
“I want all the women in my life to know that I am in their corner. Nobody has to feel like they’re alone or they’re less than or anything,” Beebe said.
Despite certain recent setbacks on women’s issues, or maybe even because of them, Beebe stated that it was especially important for women to fight for their rights at the present moment.
By Charlie Deyoe-Snyder |On March 8, Grand View University staff, students and members of the Des Moines community came together to celebrate International Women’s Day. Held in the Luther Memorial Church, the event was an opportunity for women to connect and discuss women’s experiences as well as the many different issues they face.
In her introduction, GVU President Dr. Rachelle Keck summed up the purpose of the event.
“We wanted to celebrate not only how far we’ve come, but how far we’re going to go,” Keck said.
Thinking of the past, present and the future was important. The three panels focused on those three ideas. The first panel, “Honoring Your Journey”, looked to the past and explored the personal journeys of three women with long and varied careers.
One of these was Polk County
District Attorney Kimberly Graham. After more than 20 years in law representing low-income defendants, children and families, Graham was inspired to become involved in politics after the results of the 2016 election. She ran for Iowa’s Democratic Senate seat in 2020 and came in third in the Democratic primary before running and winning the position of District Attorney in 2022.
“Representing poor people for twenty-three years showed me a lot of what needs to change in this country,” Graham said.
Though she did explain how she came to be where she is, Graham was also intent on looking forward. When asked about what young people could do to create positive change on women’s issues, her advice was succinct yet powerful.
“They need to run for office,” Gra-
ham said. “That’s the only way we’re going to change things, is to get people in positions of power that share our values,” Graham said. Undertaking a political campaign is not feasible for everyone. It requires money and time that many do not have available. Nevertheless, Graham stressed that active political involvement is crucial for anyone who wants to see themselves properly represented.
“Some people, understandably, think ‘I’m not going to contact my legislator, it won’t matter…’ It matters. The one thing politicians are responsive to is the people that vote for them. There have been times when people contacting their legislators has actually made a difference,” Graham said.
Graham’s words, along with those of the other panelists, were a reminder that there is still a long way to go
in achieving gender equity in Iowa. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women are still paid, on average, 83.7% of what men are paid. Attempts to restrict reproductive rights have been a frequent mainstay in the statehouse. Though it is not an issue solely affecting women, affordable quality childcare is as difficult to find as ever.
One of the panelists on the future-oriented panel, Barb Bremner, had unique insight into the state of childcare accessibility in Iowa. She works as an Executive Director at Early Childhood Iowa, a state organization working to support education and care for young children.
“Iowa has consistently been at the top of the fifty states in the percentage of working parents. We’re typically at seventy-six percent of parents with children in the home are working, so the kids have to be somewhere,” Bremner said.
The burden of figuring out childcare often falls on mothers and can be made even more problematic if they
“Look for a mentor…Someone who is going to reach back and make sure that you are prepared to take that next position. We’re not going to be here forever, we’re going to retire, so we need to have women in places of empowerment.” Donahue said.
Donahue stressed that while it is often difficult for women to work their way into these places of power, it must be done.
“Who has a seat at the table? As a woman of color, I’ve literally had to build my own chair and bring it to the table. Oftentimes I’ve been the only person in the room who looks like me,” Donahue said.
As Donahue explained later, women and women of color specifically are often expected to be exceptional to succeed. Not only must they be good at what they do, they must be better than everyone else to merit recognition. These expectations can be almost crushing, but Donahue had advice on that too.
“Don’t be afraid of the ‘only -
“I feel like now is the time to be stronger than ever, as a gender and with each other. And, I think we’re rising to the occasion,” Beebe said.
That appeared hard to argue with, seeing the work that the women in the room were doing or training to do.
While the event was definitely celebratory, the words of the panelists and attendees put a palpable current of action in the air.
Throughout, attendees asked themselves what they could do to create movement on women’s issues. They questioned how they could use their experiences to help others. They considered what the best ways were for them to be active politically. And, perhaps most importantly, they asked who they were and what that meant to them.
None of these answers are simple, but they are the first steps to change from International Women’s Day and beyond.
As grocery prices have continued to soar across the metro due to a changing economy, the dining hall has experienced a rise in students deciding to eat on campus instead of making food on their own. According to the Food Service Director, in 2022, students eating on-campus food options have fallen from 83% down to 75%. For some students, eating at the café is easier than making food on their own.
According to the Statista Research Department, the rate of inflation on need-to-buy products such as food, clothes, and living arrangements increased by 8% in 2022. However, the wage growth across the nation has only risen by 6.7% with the minimum wage staying stagnant
since its increase in 2009. Although budgeting can help with groceries specifically, dips in the economy can make it harder and harder for Americans to live with food insecurity, especially college students.
The Grand View University dining hall staff serves over 300 meals every day to students who want to swing by for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Open seven days a week from 7:00 in the morning to 8:00 at night, the GVU dining hall is one of the most used and talked about locations on campus. The dining hall has six different group options when it comes to which types of food they serve. These food groups include deli, produce market, grill, pizzas, dessert, and
entrée. While some groups serve mostly the same thing every day, groups like the entrées and desserts rotate daily. GVU also offers a full-fledged salad bar that is open for every meal. If options become too overwhelming, they can set up meal plans for students who want to get the best out of their eating, along with giving nutritional information about all the food they serve on their campus dish website. These are what GVU likes to call, “Menu Highlights,” which include vegan options, eat well options (lower in calories, saturated fat, and sodium), vegetarian (contains no meat, fish, or poultry), cool food meal (minimal impact on climate), whole grains, and plant-forward.
“Sometimes, if I’m just not in the mood to make anything back in my apartment, I just check to see what the café is serving and if it’s something I’ll enjoy, I just head on down,” said Jacob Thomas, a junior at GVU. “I do think though, sometimes the options that they have are just lacking,” Thomas said.
Thomas also said that if the café wants to see more students, he believes they should make their more popular items a permanent menu option. This has seemed like a common saying among students along with loss of interest due to mediocre options being offered on the regular.
Managers of the GVU Dining Hall have heard these rumblings from students and have continued to be open for change including adding surveys onto their website for student feedback, and recently trying sessions where students can come in and try new foods the café might start serving. While Dining Services Director Amanda Riordan did not respond to requests for comment on the recent changes coming to the menu, it has been known that more drink options will be coming, as well as common favorites amongst students: chicken nuggets and wings.
Charles Parker, a senior at GVU, talked about the change as a frequent café visitor.
“I know with the changes of the chefs now, they have their own menus that they like to make so we’re having a lot more ethnic foods being served, which I think is good,” Parker said. I’m not sure
though how many other people like that food because I see a lot of people try it and then they don’t like it, so they don’t go back up for more, so at the end of the day, I think people are sticking to the salad bar and or burgers and such,” Parker said.
But what is making the grocery prices so high that students feel like they have to eat on campus?
Environmental factors, an impending recession, and persistent inflation are a few of the factors to blame for the increasing cost of food. This problem can be traced back to the pandemic disruptions to the food supply chain around the world. Those disruptions are still being felt by Americans today, three years later. However, the pandemic is not the only global disruption that may be to blame for the outrageous prices, such as a $5 carton of eggs. The war in Ukraine has affected wheat exports by two
of the biggest wheat producers in the world; Russia and Ukraine. The world is facing a shortage due to their decimated production capabilities.
“Usually, I tend to gravitate towards frozen options that are not as time-consuming to make. With the prices of fresh food and produce going up, it’s harder to want to buy those nutrient-dense foods, even though they are probably better for me,” Lexi Kuecker, junior at GVU said.
Budgeting helps college students with shopping, but the increase in price makes it difficult for students to purchase everything that they need.
“I buy about the same or less stuff now,” Max Martin, Junior at GVU said. “And it costs twice as much as it did before.”
Recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the cost of groceries itself rose by 13.1%
from August 2021 to August 2022. Due to this, college students will spend on average close to $294.06 per month on groceries and an additional $369.36 on eating out. Although meal plans are created to help students avoid food insecurity, the US average cost of college food plans range around $4,500, which doesn’t include the price of students still eating out with friends or when the dining hall is closed.
“I just buy easy stuff since I eat in the caf, but next year I am planning on not eating in the caf as much so I am going to have to buy a lot more,” Martin said.
This can be frustrating for students who can only work a few hours per week but still need to have enough money to buy food.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, food insecurity is defined as “the condition of not having access to sufficient food, or food of an adequate quality, to meet one’s basic
needs.” A recent survey reported that four-year colleges around the nation have 29% of students expe-riencing food insecurity within the past 30 days. The lack of sufficient food affects both the physical and mental well-being of people and can affect how college students perform within their academics. Students with food insecurity are more likely to have a lower GPA, not show up to class, less likely to turn in high quality homework or turn it in at all, and are statistically more likely to suffer from anxiety and depression. (healthaffairs.org)
What are students doing to try and navigate around these price increases?
“Go to Dollar General, you can buy everything, it’s the same thing for like 3 dollars less,” Martin said. There are multiple different alternatives to grocery shopping than just Hy-vee or Fareway, which are the main grocery centers in Iowa.
Aldi is more convenient for GVU students in general because of the close range to campus compared to Hy-vee or Walmart. Aldi also has cheap prices for high quality food in comparison to their competitors.
“It’s good to buy in bulk at Sam’s Club or Costco and some select items, such as butter are cheaper to buy at Walmart,” Megan Mckee, a senior off-campus GVU student said.
College students cannot expect a decrease in prices or extreme shift in cafeteria food any time soon, learning techniques on budgeting and utilizing the campus food when needed is crucial. Asking friends and family members for recipes or food life-hacks can also help with avoiding a food insecure environment.
Let’s face it, college students should worry more about their next test rather than their next meal.
Summer is right around the corner for students at Grand View University. We all may have different reactions to this depending on what we have planned for the summer. When in the face of a break coming up after two busy terms, thinking about ways to optimize time or ways to add to our schedules during the summer may not be the most amazing thought. However, this important thought process not only can lead to self-improvement but also optimizing time and truly enjoying each moment of your break all the more.
How we strategize our summer can bring us ahead in the game or drag us behind. This is not to say that you must fill your summer with everything possible to make yourself busy to feel productive. Sometimes the best thing you can do to be productive is to take a break, but the best way to enjoy the best of both worlds is to make sure to balance things out.
As someone who has let the time of summer break breeze by before, it is pretty safe to say that in drifting away from keeping a routine, it can be a lot harder to ease into the fall semester.
It’s just like taking too long of a break
There is a fantasy of sorts amongst young people: An organic meet-cute in which you stumble into your perfect soulmate. However, this is less realistic than ever.
There has been a shift in the way young people interact with each other in their day-to-day lives. It is now looked down upon to approach potential dates in public.
Grand View junior, Lisa Jennings explains. “I think it’s way less common to meet people organically. People aren’t meeting up with each other anymore. I think it’s a lot harder to meet someone in person than on a screen … It’s awkward for both people.”
There are different reasons to use different apps. Tinder, for example, is considered by most college students (but not all) to be a hookup app. Other apps, such as Hinge and Bumble, are considered for those interested in a relationship. As well as this, there are exclusively gay dating apps: Like Grindr and HER.
“If I want to meet interesting people, I go to Tinder, if I wanted to actually be in a relationship with somebody, I’d go to Hinge,” said Grand View junior, Emily Tavegia.
While there is not a shortage of dating app options, it is rare for young people to experiment with lesser-known dating apps.
Dating apps are largely impersonal unless one chooses to meet up with their match, making them appealing to those choosing to dip their toes into
the dating pool. Receiving matches on dating apps can provide a confidence boost, lighthearted conversation, and entertainment. Without the pressure of wasting the other’s time, users can organically find connections.
“People that normally won’t put themselves out there, in real life, are people that either don’t know how to socialize or think ‘well maybe that person isn’t going to be attracted to me,’” said Tavegia. “I feel like Tinder, or any dating app, is a safe space to put themselves out there.”
There is a danger with the impersonal element of dating apps as well. Excluding the obvious danger that accompanies meeting up with a stranger, making compatibility decisions based on photos and a short description (that many people do not even read unless the photos have already caught their interest) is shallow.
Dating apps, at their core, are based on surface-level attraction. But is this a problem? Tavegia says no.
“Honestly, it’s not really a problem. If you think about it, that’s what people do in person too. They’re not going to come up and talk to you if they don’t find you attractive in most cases. Unless you get to know somebody first and you don’t find them attractive and then you do. I feel like it’s the same concept. People are going to be shallow if they’re going to be shallow,” Tavegia said.
While it is more common than ever to use dating apps, a stigma remains.
“I feel like most people I know, who are single, have been on a dating app at some point. Even if they hate to admit it,” said Jennings, “There’s a stigma behind it. I think everyone thinks, ‘oh you’re on Tinder you’re that desperate,’ or ‘you’re a sl*t,’ or you’re just looking for hookups, which isn’t always the truth.”
Tavegia echos this sentiment.
“When you meet somebody or you’re in a relationship with somebody, it’s always embarrassing to say ‘oh, I met them on Tinder.’ Or if you’re going on a date, you don’t want to tell your friends or family that you’re going on a Tinder date. It’s so stigmatized even though it’s so normal,” said Tavegia.
So why are college students on dating apps? The answer is simple: Dating apps are the new normal.
“I think college can be a lonely experience for a lot of people. It’s the first time you’re on your own and you’re trying to be independent … I think that drives a lot of college students to [use dating apps]. Because they’re lonely,” said Jennings. “The ads that I see for Tinder are all younger people in college.”
By Linnea Hietala | Graphics by Ashlyn Miller | Design by Ashlyn Millervulnerable side that in America you’re not supposed to share. But almost everybody has cried in class, so then everyone’s like, ‘Everyone has seen my ugly crying already. What else is there to be embarrassed about?’ I appreciate her attitude towards it because I think more people just need to cry,” Swinehart said.
Briauna Mingus is a junior and another studio major who is one year out from her experience with the class.
“Carly, tissues,” Rachel Schwaller nods toward the door.
I am no stranger to this sentence. I quietly slip out of the room, swing into Schwaller’s office and grab the tissue box off her desk. It sits inside a head shaped like an Easter Island statue, with the tissues poking out the nose. The perfect comedic relief for what can be hard moments.
Art majors are used to people crying in classes. Some may consider it unusual.
“I think it’s because it’s so highly charged. And that goes to your, ‘Art students cry. That’s weird.’ What we do is so multifaceted to the body. It affects the physical body, it affects the mental capacity of our body, in our psyche and our emotional state. I think we’re holistic beings,” Schwaller said.
Most students would be mortified crying in front of their classmates and professor. It takes a level of trust and comfortability many students do not receive in other classes. With Schwaller’s classes it is never a surprise, every art student has to undergo one class that tends to produce the most tears.
Welcome to creative process. Creative process was created to teach students how to better cultivate their creative practice independently, to give them the tools to make art on their own post-graduation. This makes it the broadest “choose your own adventure” type class. It is all dependent on work ethic, honesty and vulnerability. Hopefully by the end, students learn more about themselves and what drives them to make the work they do.
“I feel like I throw students into the fire with that class,” Schwaller says half-jokingly, “sort of like ‘here you go, here are lots of different ways that you can learn to cultivate your own creative process.’”
Amber Swinehart is a fellow studio major currently in creative process.
“I didn’t realize how in-depth it was going to be. I thought it was just the surface level of this is how you make stuff, or this is why you make stuff. ‘I make stuff because it’s interesting,’ or ‘I like animals.’ But no, it’s like deep into your psyche.
‘Who are you as a person,’ creative
process. I had some expectations, but they were swept away almost immediately,” Swinehart said.
One of the unique components about the class is the lack of grades. Students only receive a midterm and a final grade.
“I felt like grades were really stifling and people would then just work towards the grade and not towards finding themselves, finding their work, finding their practice, finding their process,” Schwaller said.
Students have to learn to find intrinsic motivation and validation for themselves. As most do, I struggled with the class my sophomore year, for many it can shift your perception on a future in the arts.
Stepping out of your comfort zone and taking risks is crucial to the class. Schwaller incorporates this through risk exercises with specific materials, challenging students to push what they can say about themselves or their work.
“You have to put yourself in a position where you’re not comfortable I think, to succeed in that portion of this class. I
don’t think you can stay in your comfort bubble and do well, because the whole point is to be risky. Either risky physically, mentally, emotionally, just something,” Swinehart said.
This can bring about the crying component. Creative process truly fosters a strong sense of community and trust amongst its participants. It gives students the opportunity to talk and work through ideas they may have never been able to before.
“I think allowing that cry space
is just a place where students can let their guard down. Be real and say ‘I don’t have all the answers. This is the place where I don’t have to have all the answers.’ And just be honest. I think that’s where the tears end up coming,” Schwaller said.
Schwaller creates a space where nothing is off limits for discussion. She encourages all emotions, both positive and negative.
“I think it allows everyone in class to trust each other a little bit more just because it is that
“It’s actually pretty reassuring and comforting to have someone say you can cry and that this is a safe area to cry and to express your emotions. It’s nice to have an authority figure be like ‘this is ok,’” Mingus said.
Like many classes, you get out of it what you put into it. Students have to recognize that effort and hard work can really strengthen what they produce after this class.
“The most important thing I learned is that it’s ok to mess up. Not everything has to come out perfectly. Things can be messy or not work out, but they can still be beneficial for your work,” Mingus said.
With creative process, most
students recognize the benefits and their growth after completing it. Nearing the finish line of this semester, Swinehart has noticed the potential.
“I think people are starting to realize that the conversations we have together are valuable and it’s not just another class to get through,” they said. “To me, this is one of the most important classes I think I’ve ever taken, just because it’s really delving into my creative process and what I want to do and why I want to do it.”
My own work would have never evolved and grown to what it is now without creative process. It has given me independence and problem-solving skills and helped me understand myself better as a person. I believe other majors in the arts like English or theatre would
find benefits from taking the class in developing their craft.
“It could definitely help people outside the major be less afraid of failure and be more experimental with whatever you do in your career path. It could also help a lot of people mature emotionally and understand their emotions and maybe make people more open to being emotionally vulnerable,” Mingus said.
Schwaller’s ultimate goal is to push students to their fullest potential. This makes creative process the hardest class she teaches, but the results are worth it.
“If I can get students to surprise themselves and be proud of something they’ve done and be really uncomfortable and live with that uncomfortability,” Schwaller said “That’s why I sort of push as hard as
I do. How do you make yourself, how do I make you more uncomfortable? Can you surprise yourself with some of the things that you think about, that you do? That you’re brave enough to talk about? That’s like the sweet spot of making really great work for me.”
The level of advanced work and thought that can be seen in students’ work after creative process is evident. Creative process has shown myself and my peers that putting in the hard, sometimes emotional work truly does make the difference in bettering our potential futures. And if there is one thing I have learned from Schwaller, it is that tears are okay.
Always okay.
kind of took that initiative to put our name out there at NAIA and set the standard for years to come.”
As an institution, Grand View University inspires a lot of pride in its students, especially through its many successful athletic teams. However, one team has shown exponential growth, doubling last season’s scores and breaking program records. This accomplishment goes to none other than GVU’s competitive cheer team.
Currently ranked number 10 in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), GVU’s cheer team has worked hard this season to earn their place at the table, winning multiple competitions, placing third at conference and competing at nationals. Head Coach, Nicholas Black is proud of the team’s growth.
“My favorite thing about coaching cheer would be just being able to see the athletes’ growth,” Coach Black said. “They often tend to think that I can’t tumble, I can’t stunt, I can’t do this. But if you switch their mindset and switch their perspective, it allows for them to grow, and that’s the most
rewarding aspect.”
Black was a member of GVU’s competitive cheer team for two years while getting his master’s degree in 2021. During Black’s last semester he accepted a position as an Assistant Coach, effectively beginning his coaching career before taking on his current role as Head Coach in August of 2021.
At this point, Black sat down with Assistant Coach Maddie Grell and the cheer team to create three goals for the program moving forward:
1. Increase the program’s numbers.
2. Break into the top ten for the NAIA competitive cheer ranking.
3. Advance to the National Championship.
To meet the first goal, Black recruited 25 athletes for the 2022-23 season, drastically increasing the program’s numbers from the 12 it had at the beginning of the 202122 season. Black hopes to keep his current athletes and continue growing program numbers to 45-
50 athletes for next season. The team also took the time to perfect their foundation of skills in practice, a difference from past seasons that could explain for some of their success.
However, it is just as important to build relationships.
“Not every practice is going to be perfect. Not every athlete is going to give 100% at all times and that’s okay. So, taking that in as a coach, you show a lot of grace, showing them that you don’t know what’s going on behind their closed door,” said Black. “And I think that has helped to build relationships, and build trust to then build the program.”
Senior Cheer Captain Penelope Olsen also felt a difference in the team’s dynamics compared to past seasons.
“I would say [this season is] definitely more of a collegiate competitive sport versus past years,” Olsen said. “Past years, I feel like we focused more on sideline gameday aspects, and this year we
Setting the standard is exactly what the team did. In past seasons, the squad scored points in the 40s and 50s. However, they doubled that score this season: Earning an average of 85.90 points on their routine with a 97-point max out.
“Sometimes, with cheer, it is very physically grueling, so they don’t think about the long-term effects of putting in the work,” said Black. “It’s really just a sigh of relief that it all paid off and that it was worth it.”
One of the season highlights was the team’s trip to the National Championship, which was held in Ypsilanti, Michigan. After two days of competing, the team received 14th place, a GVU competitive cheer record.
When talking about the experience, GVU junior Clay Garretson explained: “We didn’t come in expecting to win. We came here to have a good time and show them we deserve to be here. And I think we did that really well.”
GVU’s cheer team was the only team competing for the first time at the National Championship. While this has the potential to be discouraging, this team took it in stride.
“It was kind of overwhelming, kind of intimidating at first, being a first-time appearance team, but I feel like the team, especially with them being so young, just took everything on and wanted to take it as a learning experience, almost to see what other teams are doing,” said Olsen. “I feel like we wanted to support everyone that was there. We wanted to be everyone’s friend and just get to know everyone.”
This positive outlook exemplifies why this team was awarded the 2023 Musco Team Sportsman-
ship Award for the Heart Athletic Conference. The Heart Association of Student-Athletes (HASA) developed the award for teams that display the NAIA’s five core character values of integrity, respect, responsibility, sportsmanship and servant leadership.
The team also had six Daktronics NAIA Competitive Cheer Scholar-Athletes: Adeline Chance, Keely Cookson, Samantha Engman, Clay Garretson, Penelope Olsen and Emmawyn Powers were all nominated for their academic achievements, maintaining a minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale.
“It is just amazing to see you can work your butts off in the classroom and then still be able to compete competitively in a college sport and work. There is a lot of us that work, go to school and cheer,” said Garretson. “We have a lot going on, but we can still show that we are here for one thing, and that’s our academics.”
Moving forward, the team will set new goals to replace those they met this season. According to Black, these include winning conference, placing in the top half of the national championship, and winning the NAIA division of the National Cheer Association College Nationals for cheer in Daytona Beach, Florida. Though the team has not attended the NCA College Nationals for cheer, it is an exciting opportunity to compete with new teams and grow their skills.
Though her time at GVU is ending, Olsen is leaving confident that the competitive cheer team will continue to grow and do remarkable things.
“I feel like this is the tipping point for where they are going to go,” she said. “They are only going to go up from here.”
It was the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan and Simone Biles was warming up on the vault and was continuously bailing on tricks that would have seemed easy for her to a pedestrian’s eye.
The 30 Olympic/World Champion medal athlete pulled herself from the competition due to having the mental block called the “twisties” which leads to having no awareness of bodily control while in the air and can cause severe injuries.
Although there was some support for Biles when she withdrew at the olympics, the media was filled with people scrutinizing her and telling her she let down her country. People were saying things to her about being “selfish”, “a sociopath”, “a shame to the country”, and even “a selfish, childish national embarrassment.”
Biles is not the only pro athlete that has suffered from scrutiny due to mental health, tennis star Naomi Osaka was also scrutinized for pulling out of the French Open and Aly Raismen was facing public backlash when opening up
about sexual trauma.
Among all levels of athletics, sports come with stressors that can affect athletes in all sorts of various ways.
“Unlike many other sports where you have teammates to uplift you if things get difficult, you are completely alone and have several other people relying on you to succeed,” Grand View University Cross Country senior Seth Diser said. Performance anxiety and the feeling of fitting into a new environment are two common stressors that college athletes, especially here at GVU, experience. All levels of competition, from junior high to pro, athletes are competing for performance time, different coaching styles, injury recovery and pressures coming either internally or externally.
Starting this past fall, athletes have the opportunity to download the Wellness U app to help with any common stressors in their lives and any other mental health assistance needed. This app is focused towards giving each athlete a personalized education area for
student focus on the main concerns that may be affecting their academic or athletic performances negatively.
Although the stigma for mental health is being slowly removed within society, there is still a large portion of the population that feels alone when it comes to their mental health, so they don’t seek treatment.
any mental health or life concerns.
“The app is a great resource for students especially since we can only see the counselor five times before transferring to someone else. It really allows us athletes to get helpful tools and resources especially since some of us are constantly short on time,” said Paxton Monkelien, junior on the GVU dance team.
Ken Yeager from the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at The Ohio State University helped with developing the science behind the app to ensure that all of the mental health support provided is all evidence-based. Yeager’s base research follows psychological trauma, crisis intervention, victim of crime and substance use disorders. He also works for the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) as part of the Program for Substance Abuse.
When a student first downloads Wellness U, they will initially need to complete a long self-assessment, which will make the app and its resources personalized to each student. This helps each
However, no matter what the stressor is, it is far from the truth of each person being alone when looking at statistics. According to the Wellness U website (wellnessu.info), 31% of students said anxiety negatively impacts their academics, 27% of student-athletes reported having anxiety and only 10% find resources to help. Furthermore, 64% of students dropout of college due to mental health, 75% of lifetime mental health issues begin at 24, and those ages 10 to 24 take up around 10% of all suicides.
Coaches will get sent a full report that will cover what main factors the team is dealing with and how to implement strategies into practice that will help the team overall. Coaches can have their athletes complete the main assessment twice within a season to see how the team is developing as different factors of their sport come up compared to the beginning of the season.
“We thought, what could we do to make this better? We realized that a lot of those thoughts and stressors are not from them personally but instead the culture,” said Morgan Koth, CEO of Accentus Health (company that developed Wellness U). “We give these reports to the coaches and the administration so that they know what’s happening. Then from there we give the coaches talking points to use so that athletes don’t have to feel like they need to go straight to their coach or a counselor.”
These reports include the current state of the team’s wellness, topics the athletes are curious about, areas of success within the team, areas of opportunities, and items to elevate the team.
“Not everyone talks to campus counselors. Athletes may not trust them because they don’t look like them, sound like them, they were never an athlete so how do they know what they are going through?” Koth said.
Within the app, all users have access to a wide variety of resources that can assist with the specified stressors from the assessment, as well as more. Unlike the current TeleHealth app that is also being used at GVU, the resources are free to use all the time and as many times as needed.
“If you go to Campus Help (within the app) you can find
resources for self harm, LBGTQ+, addiction, and even links to on campus resources. Not everyone feels comfortable going to a counselor so having resources like this is important,” Koth said.
These resources include sections that focus on learning about the stressors that affect us daily, a practice tab that can help locate and understand triggers for each athlete, videos to help work through triggers and coping techniques, as well as a fitness and wellness articles tab.
Certain teams on campus have implemented this app into their program to help each athlete on the team, whether they are suffering from clinical depression to financial stress. Although here at GVU the app is used for mainly athletics on campus, any student or athlete is able to download the app and use any of its resources.
Mental health is the one thing that everyone tells themselves they want to work on but do not know how to start the process of self-love. The most important thing to start learning about your own mental health is to find the resources that work for you personally. Wellness U has a wide variety that can work for everyone and anyone that has different mental health needs and priorities.
Michelle Prange - GVU Athletic Success Coordinator
“Success is not defined by money. Success should be defined by what you do for others.” - AJ Peterson
This quote is from the owner and president of Lone Wolf Financial, AJ Peterson. Lone Wolf Financial is a small investment insurance firm located in Des Moines, Iowa. Peterson works with a wide variety of clients. What sets them apart from the pack is that the firm strives to fairly represent small-town residents.
Peterson grew up in Madrid, a small-town farming community about 30 miles northwest of Des Moines. The town has a population of about 2,800 residents. Peterson’s grandparents lived on a farm, and he worked on a farm on and off during his time in high school. However, he wouldn’t necessarily say he grew
up on a farm. Being a small-town kid, Peterson was interested in hobbies like hunting, fishing, and chasing the sports dream.
In high school Peterson was a three-sport athlete playing track, basketball, and football for the Madrid Tigers.
After graduating, Peterson decided to head to Cedar Rapids to attend and play football at a small private school Coe College.
In his first two years of football, Peterson played defense and was a punter who played on special teams. In his last two years with the teams, they switched him to playing at tight end.
After college he had the opportunity to play for a semipro football league in Germany by playing for the Ravensburg Razorbacks. The Razorbacks are now a part of the top league in German football because of the European relegation and promotion system that is seen in the sport of soccer. Peterson had the opportunity to try out for
Des Moines and work for them. Eventually, Peterson did not want to be confined in a box by these types of businesses as it was not what fit him best. He decided to ‘go rogue’ and start his own business.
In June 2005, Peterson started his own business where he faced hard challenges in the first six months of starting. He recently bought a house and just had a baby.
Peterson remembers clearly the stuggles with starting a business and his primary reason for starting one.
“What I wanted to do was service versus sales,” Peterson said.
the World League which would become NFL Europe before inevitably folding, but he decided to head back to the states and retire from his sports career.
“You win, you lose, and how do you deal with that throughout my childhood, through college, has taught me how to be a better businessperson,” Peterson said. During that gap year after returning from Germany, Peterson was faced with adversity trying to find work.
“You get humbled, right? As good as you think you are, you realize you’re just not that good. And that’s part of the life process. When you are kinda on a high, you get knocked down, how do you bring yourself back up, and find another direction?” Peterson said.
Peterson then decided to go to a career fair at the University of Northern Iowa located in Cedar Falls. He was approached by some young stockbrokers who wanted him to come to
Peterson cared more about the experience than what he sold. He is inspired to represent smaller clients so that they have a voice and are well represented and treated fairly. Peterson credits this to his dad wanting him to stick up for people.
Peterson does not like being in business suits and would rather meet face to face than work for a faceless and emotionless large corporation that only cared about profit than service. That is what lead to Peterson breaking off from the majority. Peterson is also selfless and will do what he can to help anyone.
President of Sport Management club, Bryce Dean, has known Peterson for most of his life.
“He’s probably one of the most giving, caring people I know,” Dean said.
Dean has known Peterson for nineteen years, and the two are like father and son.
“He’s probably the closest thing to Evil Knievel I can ever think of,” Dean said.
Dean describes Peterson as wild, funny, and a family man. Dean also says that Peterson is a caring person and will help
people in need.
“A couple years ago my dad had an aortic dissection. One of the walls in his heart ripped open. And we honestly didn’t know if he was going to make it through the three, four-hour time span that was like the most critical. AJ was one of the first people to be at the house, and this is like two, three in the morning,” Dean said.
Peterson made sure Dean and his siblings were doing okay and even made sure to sneak Dean’s parents’ coffee and other things into the hospital. This was during COVID when patients could only have one person visiting at all times. Peterson also helped Dean’s family when his dad was recently laid off and going through financial troubles. Dean never saw Peterson as a professional athlete.
“You know, to be honest with you, that’s never really been a part of who AJ is to us. We all knew he was a really good athlete in high school and in college and that he had played overseas, but, it’s not something that he like brings up, brags
about or anything like, to be honest,” Dean said that.
Peterson is an example of someone who puts others before themselves and would rather take time to get to know you and learn how he can help you grow and mature rather than boasting about his accomplishments. A true Iowan no matter if he is in Germany playing football or working in Des Moines in jeans and a plaid shirt. AJ Peterson will always be willing to help you with a smile.
By Jordan Lipinski Photos by Mayeli Jimenez | Design by Linnea Hietala
Grand View University has around twenty-two active clubs and orgs on campus. Our peers and fellow students are individuals that impact student and campus life through their leadership of these groups. Some of these leaders’ stories are highlighted here.
Eric Liborio is the new president of Voz Latinx and is ready to build a new structure for the club. Liborio has leadership experience from his time in the US Military and is confident about tackling the basics of leadership.
"I like the thought of being an actual community," Liborio said.
Many of the student population identifies with Latino cultures and ethnicities. Liborio was intrigued by the fact that there is a club for highlighting and creating community around Latino countries and individuals from those cultures. A struggle for Voz Latinx has been building a new community since there is a wave of members as others graduate. Liborio envisions himself tackling these struggles with his personality and focusing on specific events and campus impact.
"I just want everyone to feel comfortable," Liborio said when addressing his challenges as a new leader. Despite growing up and not being very social, Liborio now uses humor to relate to people, create a comfortable environment and continue to grow in leadership while impacting the campus community.
GVU senior and Human Service club president, Terry Hall, is originally from New York City. He found GVU while relocating for his wife’s career and enrolled to further his education and obtain his bachelor’s degree. Hall is passionate about human services and providing others with the resources and accommodations they need. The club often organizes events and activities that give back to the community both on and off campus through events such as food drives and donations.
Although Hall is in his forties, he believes furthering education does not have to put you in a box. Being different than the majority of GVU’s campus community, a leadership role has provided Hall with confidence in his abilities to lead a group. Hall’s open-mindedness sets him apart from other people and leaders. Discussing and advocating for accessibility and learning experiences within a leadership role is important to Hall.
“We all have a voice,” Hall said.
Business Management major Brian Kolpek is a senior and is the president of the Future Business Leaders of America at GVU, also referred to as the FBLA club. Kolpek has a history of involvement with clubs on campus. He was initially a treasurer and then went out for president for the 22-23 school year.
FBLA is centered around those in business studies but overall provides networking events that can boost professional relationships for all college students. Kolpek described the dynamic of the club as member oriented, events and trips relying on everyone’s input and insight within the club. The interests and needs that each member has pertain to boosting professional relationships, which is also important. Being motivated when taking on leadership as a student is the key to balancing busy schedules. Leadership can be stressful, but knowing your own goals and needs develops who you are as a leader and allows you to reach your goals.
“The work that I do now will pay in dividends later on,” Kolpek said.
Brooklyn Mills is a junior from the local DSM area. She is co-leading the Catalyst club on campus with Dalton Dencklau. The Catalyst club is part of a national chapter of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, focusing on the science and medical programs at GVU. Mills provided insight into their goals to not only get students within the programs involved on campus but also impact the community around GVU.
Mills is a biochemistry major with an interest in data analytics, studying here in her hometown. The Catalyst club drew Mills' attention as a community for those in the sciences, especially marginalized groups.
“I just like to get a lot of diverse groups into what we do,” Mills said, as the club works with the Boys and Girls Club on the East side of the Des Moines area.
Connection is important to Mills, and she wants to, “provide an environment where other students or people feel comfortable,” especially in finding support within her personality and abilities.
Seth Wilson is a student leader and athlete at GVU. Through his own needs for financial literacy and interest in investment, Wilson became president of the Investment club. Wilson believes the main mission for the Investment club is to provide the GVU community with access to professional opportunities that help with financial literacy.
Having familiarity and familial ties to GVU, Wilson’s decision to stay in the DSM area was easy. His journey and decision to study at GVU are inspired by the locality.
“Grand View is the school of Des Moines,” Wilson said.
Advertising and getting the campus community to be involved coming off the higher risks of the pandemic is something that can be a barrier for all clubs. Wilson believes clubs have a duty to get students back to being comfortable interacting on campus.
Becoming a student leader may be a struggle for some, but experiencing growth and building community is what makes it worthwhile.
Nestled along Hwy 3 just northwest of Fort Dodge sits a small town by the name of Pocahontas. Home of just under 2,000 individuals, Pocahontas is the birthplace of one of the most athletic families that the state of Iowa has had to offer: The Ruffridge family. Brandon and Karla Ruffridge are the parents to Elle, Shea and Tyce who all have left their mark on the town in one way or another. Elle is the alltime leading Iowa High School girls’ basketball scoring leader and won two state championships for Pocahontas High School, while Shea and Tyce were state wrestling qualifiers including a state championship for Shea during his senior season.
Elle would play basketball and study education at Missouri State while Shea, going into his senior season, decided to make his choice of secondary education. While he was a soon-to-be champion on the mat, Shea was also a three-time state
qualifier, along with playing multiple sports including football, and baseball. In fact, he almost went to college for baseball but thought his size didn’t fit the sport well.
“I felt like my strengths were in wrestling and I was almost too undersized for baseball.”
After some thinking, Shea landed on picking Grand View University to wrestle at in the fall of 2017.
“I fell in the love with the program here and felt like I’d be the most successful coming here no matter what, whether I ended up being a national champ or not, I felt like I’d become a better person.”
Shea would redshirt his first year at GVU but would come out strong his freshman season as he advanced to the NAIA National Wrestling Meet as a one seed, but unfortunately came up short. His sophomore season saw highs and lows and almost ended up in him transferring away from the
program but after some time to work it out, he returned to finish what he started. Shea would come back to finish third his junior season at the national championship and would have his eyes set on a title coming into his senior year. Shea would go through the season ranked 6th most the year but got his way up to a 5th seed at nationals. There, he went on a dominant run and upset Life University’s Julian Hernandez by an 8-1 decision to capture his first individual national championship. He would also win Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Year.
“I felt a lot of joy. I put a lot into this sport and it’s hard. And achieving something that I’ve been chasing for my life. I’ve been wrestling for 17 years, so to achieve something of that magnitude feels really good,” Shea said. “I love being the underdog, and I love the underdog mindset. Even though in my book,
I knew I was better than the guys ahead of me, I just like the underdog role.”
When asked about what changed from his junior to senior year, Shea said it was all about the people around him.
“I took a lot of the pressure off myself. I didn’t wrestle for myself but for other people. I have a tendency to do that, where I put a lot of pressure on myself, and I get performance anxiety. I’d feel like a musician who’d be out on the stage and forget how to play their trumpet or sing.”
Shea also attributed his success to his growing faith throughout the season.
“I let that pressure go and got a little bit more religious during this season. I’m not the biggest believer in religion but we have a team chapel who comes and talks to us every Thursday and my faith just grew throughout the year. I think that really helped me through some of those mental battles.”
Shea’s championship along with five other Viking wrestlers who either finished runner-up or a champion, easily propelled Grand View to their 11th national championship in school
history.
While Shea competed for his first national championship during the NAIA Finals in Wichita Kansas, his older sister Elle was eagerly watching 390 miles away in Des Moines Iowa while watching players warm up for the Iowa Girl’s State Basketball 1A Championship Game at the exact same time. Elle had just finished broadcasting one of her first ever state title games and had quickly hopped off the air and found her laptop to watch her brother wrestler.
“It’s funny because I’m pretty superstitious when it comes to sports, and I was contemplating even watching it because I hadn’t watched a single match from the tournament leading up to that point. Eventually it was my boyfriend of all people who told me, ‘Elle you can’t miss this. You have to watch it.’”
And that she did. While the lights were dark in the arena for starting lineup presentations Elle sat courtside with her computer screen glowing, displaying her younger brother capture a national title.
“It was amazing. I just wish I could’ve been there for him. Shea is always very understanding. And
it sucked having to miss him win a national title, but I wouldn’t have missed it for the world in terms of watching it.”
Ironically, this isn’t the first time Elle had to watch her brother win a title through a laptop screen. Back in 2018 when Shea won his high school state championship, Elle was in the middle of a team dinner with her Missouri State teammates in Valparaiso Indiana at a Noodles and Company watching it all unfold.
“My entire teammates were surrounding the table watching and I was bawling because I was so happy. But I was in a Noddles and Company when I saw Shea win a state championship.” Being there for her brother is always something Elle has fought with throughout her life. Being one of the greatest Iowa High School basketball players of all time did not come easy for her, or her family.
“At a very young age my parents and I had made this commitment to travel all across the country to play the sport that I love. So, Shea and Tyce were always my #1 fans and always followed me. And of course, when he had a wrestling meet that I could go watch, I was his #1 support-
er, but it was really hard to go to as much for my brothers as they did for me.”
Elle also talked about how much her parents, Brandon and Karla meant to her and her brothers for both being so involved in the Pocahontas School District with Brandon being the athletic director and Karla being a sixth-grade teacher.
“Looking back, it’s hard for me knowing I wasn’t there as much as they were. We were a family that was always on the go, and a lot of credit goes to my parents. I couldn’t tell you how many miles went on their cars, how much money they have spent on tournaments and hotel rooms. They always put us first.”
The brother and sister athletic bond between Elle and Shea is one that will forever be remembered by Pocahontas High School and beyond for years to come. Coming up through school behind arguably one of the greatest high school basketball players ever to play the game was not an easy
task for Shea, but he contributed a lot of his success based on what his sister did before him.
“She was just a huge motivator for me because I didn’t want to be that kid who was living in his sister’s shadow, even though she’s one of the greats of Iowa High School Basketball, but I just wanted to make sure I left my mark at Pocahontas like she did and our whole family has taken pride into that place and we all feel we’ve left it in a better place than we’ve found it.”
While Shea gives credit to his sister, Elle gives credit to Shea from a support standpoint, but also spoke highly of Pocahontas in general and what the town means to her and her family.
“That town and that community has had such an impact on who I am as a person today. Just a lot of pride and joy within that school. Growing up in a small town; there is truly nothing better. You learn different values and work ethics. I think that is
what made us the athletes and leaders that we are today. Pocahontas will forever be home.”
For Elle, she currently resides in Spirit Lake where she teaches sixth grade in the school district just like her mom. She also will continue to broadcast state basketball tournaments for years to come for the Iowa Girl’s High School Athletic Union. For Shea, he still has one more semester left in the fall to finish his education degree but plans to become an athletic director just like his dad. Both Elle and Shea still stay in close contact with each other including an exceptionally long Snapchat streak that they continue daily. For the Ruffridge family, it has never been a competition against one another. It has always been about what they have left behind.
“In every sport I was doing, I just wanted to leave my mark, just like she (Elle) did,” Shea said. And leaving his mark, Shea and the entire Ruffridge family has done.
Elle:
Shea:
- 3x NAIA National Wrestling Meet Participant
- 1x NAIA National Wrestling Champion
- 1x Iowa High School Wrestling Champion
- 2022-2023 Most Outstanding Wrestler of the Year
- 2x Iowa High School State Basketball Champion
- All-time leading scorer in Iowa Girl’s State Basketball history
- 2nd most points scored in Iowa High School Girl’s State Tournament single game history
- 2nd most points scored across entire Iowa State Girl’s Tournament Career
The Metaverse is a virtual world made up of multiple interconnected virtual realities. People can interact, play games, explore new worlds and share experiences through a pair of virtual goggles. Although the concept is currently premature, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, seems to think mankind is not far off from heavily integrating themselves into a virtual world. Experiencing simple things in real life and conducting business operations may soon be a relic of the past. This dystopian landscape may seem frightening, but perhaps the metaverse isn’t as daunting as what we might come to expect.
Coming off the zoom frenzy during COVID, the metaverse may soon be the place that everyone logs into to attend their classes. The return of a virtual learning environment would certainly open up opportunities for schools to offer a different kind of education that is currently restricted by a lack of resources or other obstacles that are simply unrealistic to replicate in a classroom. One of the potential benefactors is nursing programs, as professors and students may be able to conduct experiments or surgeries in the metaverse without the fear of any lasting consequences.
The metaverse will undoubtedly
present new opportunities for people around the world to create all kinds of revenue streams. People are already creating and selling goods online, such as clothing, furniture, or even artwork. This will not only provide a new source of income for people who may not have had access to traditional job opportunities but also allow existing businesses to market and sell their products around the world.
The benefits of a virtual world being a platform for individuals to accomplish all kinds of things do seem quite promising. But society should not neglect the potential exposure and downside in the wake of a reality where everyone is seemingly connected in the comfort of their own home.
Addiction is certainly the first item on the list. Like any form of entertainment, people can easily become addicted and spend their whole day living in a virtual world. The implications this has on real-world relationships and responsibilities are not only scary to imagine but can also easily be compounded by a host of physical health issues that come with being inactive in front of a screen for extended periods.
After speaking to GVU sports member Justin Good, there seemed to be a sense of reservation when it came to discussing the metaverse and what this step in technology would mean for the next generation. Privacy was one of the primary concerns Good had.
“When you have a new flashy thing like the metaverse, you are going to have younger people who want to be a part of it. That can put younger people at risk because they don’t always understand how the internet works,” Good said.
Privacy seems to be the number one topic of discussion in what already looks like a virtual world due to how quickly technology has moved forward. As people spend more time on their screens, they may fall victim to sharing their personal information that can be used to track their behaviors and preferences.
The sheer access and convenience that comes with online purchasing has seen the public spend beyond their means.
“I already have my card set up with almost all my online purchases. If that is something that gets brought into the metaverse,
I think companies will abuse it and take advantage of their customers,” Zach Harris said. Harris is a master’s student at GVU who is experienced with the gaming market and how virtual products are rolled out to its consumers. This is already the case in how advertising is presented in today’s world, but the virtual world can be another platform where people are scammed, exploited or blackmailed. Criminals can create fake identities and avatars to deceive others and engage in fraudulent behavior.
There is still much to speculate before humanity decides to migrate to a virtual world. There are many great arguments to support its integration, but like any controversial subject, there are also negative aspects to consider. From addiction, and a lack of privacy to exploitation and a disconnection from reality, it’s crucial to be aware and delicate when it comes to accepting the new digital world.
Adams said.
Gleaming and gold, the Iowa State Capitol building is a must-see destination for any Des Moines visitor or resident. The Capitol is home to many governmental groups and assemblies, but it is also a historic site and a symbolic building for our state. Why is this building so notorious to not only Iowa, but the country itself?
Though constructed in 1886, the Iowa Capitol, also referred to as the Iowa Statehouse, is shockingly not the original statehouse. The original statehouse was constructed in Iowa City, located in the center of what is now the University of Iowa’s campus. This building was erected in the 1840s and has been named a U.S. National Historic Landmark since 1976. Though the building is not in the current capital of Des Moines, the original Iowa constitution was created in the Old Capitol Building and the first governor of the state, Ansel Briggs, was inaugurated there. After ten years, the state decided to move the seat of
the state government westward, making its location more centralized in Monroe City.
The second statehouse was a three-story brick building which simply served as a temporary Capitol whilst the permanent Capitol building was being planned and constructed by the General Assembly. The temporary state house was destroyed by fires after 30 years. Around the same time, the budget for a permanent state house had been approved for 1.5 million dollars - however this budget was far exceeded - and the head architects, John C. Cochrane and Alfred H. Piquenard, had laid out the plans for this brilliant building. The Capitol building was completed in 1886 after many years of construction.
The Iowa Capitol building is the only five-domed Capitol in the United States. In fact, it is one of only 10 golden domed capitol buildings in the nation. These glistening, 23-karat gold covered domes are not the only astounding features of the Capitol. The artwork and detailed architecture make this building a
prominent piece of history and excellence. Costs to maintain this landmark have continually skyrocketed because as the years have progressed, the building began to deteriorate and also withstood serious damage from a fire in 1904. About every 25 years, the gilded domes are renovated in order to keep this prominent building glistening, catching the eye of everyone in the downtown Des Moines area. Though the exterior is, indeed, eye-catching, many people are drawn to tour the interior of the capitol, learning more about the building itself.
The Capitol hosts tours for people wanting to learn more about the structure and the overall role the building plays in our government. According to Serena Adams, the tour guide supervisor at the Iowa State Capitol, roughly 75,000 people visit annually for tours.
“Typically, everyone says this is one of the best capitals in the nation. We have visitors that make it their mission to visit all of the state capitols and this is always at the top of the list,”
The Iowa State Capitol offers walk-in tours Monday to Saturday from 8am to 5pm. These tours are roughly 90 minutes long and free. Visitors are led by tour guides through the building, admiring the architecture, artwork, and displays. One of the favorite aspects of this tour is the opportunity to climb the 90-step spiral staircase to the base of the center dome. Here, tourists are able to look down about 100ft into the center rotunda. Though visitors are not granted access, a surprising fact that many visitors are not aware of is that the Capitol has a system of intricate tunnel systems beneath the grounds. These tunnels connect to the different buildings on the grounds, allowing workers to easily access the other structures in the winter months. These tunnels can also serve as a safe and efficient way for higher up officials to move around the capitol property.
It is no surprise that these tours are so popular. Adams gave
a descriptive look into some of the interior features of the capitol.
“Our law library is a favorite of a lot of people and it’s a very beautiful room. If you were to look at various lists, it would come up as one of the most beautiful libraries in the world. It’s a five-story building with cast iron, spiral staircases on each end that houses about 100,000 law books,” Adams said.
This room is shockingly beautiful. Guests are able to photograph each room and admire the library on their walk through.
Something to keep in mind about this building is the attention to detail and labor that was put into its design. Everything was done by hand. From the hand paintings and hand stenciling, to the hand carved marble and wood.
The artwork in this building provides visitors the opportunity to not only appreciate, but to jump back in time.
According to Adams, the
Westward mural is at the head of the grand staircase. It is 14ft tall and 40ft wide. It holds a lot of symbolism, depicting pioneers coming into Iowa and traveling with a large stagecoach. It shows what Iowa looked like and the pioneers cultivated the land. The artwork is a jump back in time. When people come to visit this building, they are not only looking at the gorgeous interior, but are able to learn more about the beginnings of Iowa and some of the key moments in Iowa history. Additional artwork that stands out to Adams is the overall attention to detail. There are lunettes, or semi-circular arches, around the center rotunda, statues, and mosaics that were crafted from half a million small tile pieces. The amount of detail in this building is what sets it apart from the other state capitols in the United States.
The Iowa State Capitol reflects the values of the state and
its history.
“From the very start, Iowa has been a very progressive state. Our motto is ‘Our liberties we prize and our rights we will maintain,’” Adams said.
This was created by members of the Senate committee and was even incorporated into the design of the state’s seal. The artwork suggests the overall idea of the state being progressive, as there are many works depicting women with rights and freed slaves. This artwork, from the early 1880s when it was added to the capitol, proves that the state has had very forward-thinking ideas, unlike many other states at that time.
This historic landmark is a functioning and vital piece of government. Today, the Iowa State Capitol houses important groups and assemblies such as the Iowa Senate, the Iowa General Assembly, the Iowa House of Representatives, the
Attorney General, the Secretary of State, the Treasurer, and the Office of the Governor. This building also stands as a living museum, offering tours for visitors to learn more about the building and its architecture, artwork, and the artifacts on display. The primary use of this building today is to be a house for the legislative branch, where all Iowa laws are proposed.
The Iowa State Capitol is a public building. The general public has access to not only tours, but actual events held inside the capitol.
“The public is always welcome. They are welcome to sit in on committee meetings. They are welcome to sit in on debates. We do have rallies and protests with some of our more controversial bills that will happen or people that are just trying to get the attention of legislatures for their personal agendas. So yes, it’s a public building… The public is always welcome,” Adams said.
This gives the public access to understand the process of passing or denying certain bills and allows them to hear the debates between the members of the various branches. The state capitol, and the branches of government it houses, is the key building to not only Iowa’s past, but the future of the state.
The Iowa State Capitol has a long and impressive history. Holding countless events, tours to the public, and serving as the home to Iowa law, it is important to keep the building well maintained so it can continue to be a functioning piece of government and be accessible to people wanting to learn more about the state. Thanks to careful teams of local architects, there are plans already in place to make sure that this notorious building is left gleaming and gold for the future generations to admire.
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Is graduate school worth the time, money and effort?
This is the question undergrad students and professionals around the world ask as they wonder if grad school is the right option for them. For some careers, a master’s degree is required. At Grand View University, graduate counselors are available to guide those interested in master’s programs.
GVU has several master’s programs and higher education certifications available, even recently adding another program for School Counseling. Enrollment Counselor, Ginger Hermon and Director of Graduate and Adult Admissions, Rick Eftink, both help students navigate through the grad school process at GVU. They help with the application and make sure each student is putting their best foot forward.
“You should be looking at it like an investment in yourself. Education is one of the few things you can take with you in life that won’t decrease in value,” Eftink said.
When students commit to a program of choice, an application, reference sheet and essay must be submitted to the graduate committee. Students will hear back within a week from their application being submitted. Eftink explained the acceptance process and added some tips he provides students to increase their
likeliness to be accepted, specifically touching on the essay section of the application that takes a lot of effort and attention to detail.
“They expect a little bit higher level of writing, so spell checking and looking for errors are really important,” Eftink said.
Eftink said that, in careers such as teaching, receiving a master’s degree allows professionals to receive promotions and salary increases.
“It opens a lot more doors. It can increase salaries quite a bit,” Eftink said.
Grad school students must remain committed and focused throughout the whole program. Eftink said that students who enjoy the subjects they are learning about seem to enjoy their master’s programs more because the work doesn’t feel as daunting. Students can attend part-time or full-time, which can be completed in as little as a year for some programs offered at GVU. Many students that pursue graduate programs at GVU are working outside their coursework.
“You have to make sure that you can keep up with your studies. It does require a lot of work,” Eftink said. The course demands of grad school can be a lot to handle but Mu Paw, a Social Work grad school
student says classmates, staff and her family have helped her through the tough times. She explained that she chose GVU for both undergrad and grad school because she enjoys the small class sizes and inclusive community GVU offers. While in grad school she enjoys connecting with her classmates and professors.
“My classmates have been very nice, polite, and nonjudgmental. I feel like I belong,” Paw said.
Each person that attends grad school has unique motivations as to why they decided to attend. As a refugee herself, Paw wants to become a Clinical Mental Health Counselor to help her community. Attending a graduate program is the next step after obtaining a bachelor’s degree.
“After I graduated with my undergrad, I worked with EMBARC helping refugees. As a case manager, I saw a need for mental health services because of language barriers and no interpreters, it’s hard for the refugee community. I want to become a mental health therapist to help fill the gap,” Paw said.
Another grad student in the athletic training master’s program, Joseph Valadez, explained he chose GVU for his master’s because he also got his undergrad in Kinesiology from GVU.
He said he enjoyed the small class sizes and campus overall.
“I applied other places in case I didn’t get in, but thank goodness I did,” Valadez said.
There are distinct differences between undergrad courses and master’s courses. Writing, critical thinking, and soft skills are all part of master’s course curriculums. In the Athletic Training Program students must be ready for content application and be able to put what they are learning into practice.
“With this program specifically it’s a lot more critical thinking and putting what you’re learning in class into practice in clinicals,” Valadez said. Whether you are looking for a job promotion, additional income, or it’s required for your career. Choosing whether or not to go to grad school can be a hard decision to make. Paw offered a word of encouragement to prospective students.
“I will say to future students [to] be confident. Be confident in yourself, be confident in the decisions you make. There is opportunity out there and just ask for help when needed,” Paw said.
“We wanted to include pops of pastel colors like light blue and light pink because it makes our room feel brighter. We wanted our room to feel cozy and welcoming.”
Photos by Erin Nossaman
The L Apartments on campus feature private bedrooms and a shared bathroom, living room and kitchen.
This room in Langrock Suites features two shared bedrooms, a common living space and bathroom.
Laney Baird (left), Lexi Van Utrecht, Paige Burkland and Jenna Davenport are the residents of this room. They are also teammates on Grand View Dance Team.
-Lexi Van Utrecht
Lexi Kuecker, Morgan Schulz, Gracie Kettwig, and Audrey Hood are the residents of this apartment decorated for Hood’s 22nd birthday.
A trend has become popular across the country called. Staycations. Staycations can introduce locals to a diverse range of activities and destinations throughout the Des Moines Metro area. They can be a source for a quick mental boost, be a budget-friendly alternative to far destinations, and can help people discover fun locations close to home.
Walking and biking trails, historic buildings, monuments, museums, festivals, shops, restaurants, and award-winning markets, with something for anyone, makes Des Moines the perfect local staycation destination year-round. Young adults in the area and college students at Grand View University can travel locally and see what amenities Des Moines has.
“Typically, students have different kinds of interests. Whether it be arts, or culture, or sports, or entertainment, the list goes on and on and Des Moines is a great place to feel that and feature all that kind of stuff,” said Greg Edwards, President and CEO of Catch Des Moines. Catch Des Moines is a local organization that strives to increase economic growth in the area and bring people to the city. They are proud to offer resources to travelers to help plan and meet their needs. They encourage people of all ages to get out and enjoy the city.
“I think at the college age it’s time to get out and explore things,” Edwards said. Over the last few years of the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted the tourism industry. Even though tourism slowed, Edwards said that Des Moines is now recovering from the effects of the Pandemic and businesses across the area are continuing to recover. A way to help the recovery process is to travel locally.
“We are coming off the COVID pandemic which really hurt the travel industry. We are seeing that people are anxious to get out and travel again,” Edwards said.
People are eager to get out and travel, but costs increasing worldwide are making it more difficult to afford to travel. Des Moines, however, has many affordable options for local entertainment, restaurants, and activities to meet the needs of the traveler. The Des Moines Arts Center, State Historical Museum, and sculpture park are all examples of local attractions that are free. Edwards provided some tips for travelers, such as following a budget, keeping an eye out for coupons, and being mindful of where you are spending money. Although prices are increasing, people can still travel with careful planning since there are free and affordable
options in the area.
“Traveling doesn’t have to be expensive. It sure could be, but if you think about it in terms of what can I connect to for free it’s less stressful,” said Heather Thomas, a licensed mental health counselor at GVU.
Studies have been conducted around the world and have found that travel leads to a boost in individuals mental and physical health. A 2018 study from Austria found travel can help people reduce stress which then has a positive effect on health.
The pandemic was a traumatic time for people and temporarily took away the ability to travel so it is more important now than ever to get out and explore, even if it’s just locally.
Whether you are seeking a way to boost mental health, looking for a budget friendly vacation, or are just wanting to get out and see the community, taking a staycation in Des Moines might be just what you need.
“I think new experiences and adventures are positive for people because they can expand your perspective,” Thomas said. “It is so easy to get stuck in a rut or just focus on yourself or focus on the bad things so anything you can do to interrupt that thought process can be helpful.”
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